Apply By: Friday, August 28, 2026 11:59 pm EDT

Specialist, Payroll & Benefits Administration

Job ID:
248337
Organization:
Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario
Division:
Finance and Risk Management Division / Controllership
City:
North York
Position(s) language:
English
Job term:
1 Permanent
Job code:
AGCO/07 - AGCO/07
Salary:
$74,435.00 - $87,573.00 Per year

The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) is an agency where innovation thrives, ideas flourish, and passion drives us to new heights of excellence. Reporting to the Ministry of the Attorney General, the AGCO is responsible for regulating Ontario's vibrant alcohol, gaming, horse racing, and private retail cannabis sectors in accordance with the principles of honesty and integrity, and in the public interest.

The AGCO is looking for a seasoned Payroll and Benefits Administration Specialist (‘Specialist') to join their team. Reporting to the Manager, Payroll and Benefits Administration (‘Manager'), the position will be responsible for providing payroll, benefits, and pension services in accordance with federal and provincial legislative requirements, as well as the relevant directives, policies, and procedures. These services include processing bi-weekly payroll, payroll year-end and benefits, including pension administration and related reconciliations, reporting, and remittances. In addition, this position will act as a subject matter expert on all payroll and benefits, including pension-related activities, to ensure that they are handled accurately, timely, and with a customer-centric approach. The position will be an integral part of the Branch, working in collaboration with others, and would serve as backup for the Analyst, Payroll and Benefits Administration, as required.

About the job

What You Will Do:
• Process the organization's scheduled and ad hoc payroll runs timely and accurately.
• Prepare reconciliations and monitor payments to third parties and resolve issues.
• Prepare required reports for monitoring and management reporting.
• Respond to payroll queries from management and employees by providing prompt and appropriate responses based on the queries.
• Process transactions related to pension and insured benefit coverage in a timely manner (enrolments, terminations, changes, etc.).
• Perform information updates to the payroll system, pension, and the benefit providers' portals.
• Reconcile payroll deductions and the benefit providers' invoice and resolve discrepancies.
• Remain abreast of requirements from legislation, directives, policies, and procedures to ensure compliance, as well as changes to the payroll processing system.
• Perform regular and annual review of the operating procedures and submit changes for approval.
• Work on process improvements and innovations and provide recommendations.
• Participate in the branch, division, and organization-wide working groups.
• Provide branch program support as required.

What you bring to the team


You Have:

• Post-secondary education in business and/or 3+ years of relevant experience administering payroll and benefits.
• Expert knowledge in payroll compliance and reporting in a unionized environment with defined benefit pension plans.
• Thorough knowledge of payroll, pension, and benefits legislative and other requirements.
• Sound knowledge of:
o applicable benefit types (e.g., health, dental, pension, etc.).
o payroll software application
o records management principles and practices
• Knowledge of accounting principles, practices, and procedures as related to the payroll, pension, and benefits processing.
• Strong mathematical and problem-solving skills to investigate and resolve discrepancies in payroll.
• Excellent attention to detail with a high degree of accuracy.
• Strong communication skills to establish and maintain effective working relationships with all levels of the agency and the payroll service provider.
• Eligibility to work in Canada and the ability to successfully complete a criminal background check.

Nice to have:

• A Payroll Compliance Practitioner (PCP) designation or proof of working towards the designation (Payroll Leadership Professional (PLP) designation awarded or near completion would be an asset).

To apply to this vacancy, please submit your application online at our Careers webpage located at Careers | Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario by August 28, 2026. Please note that only applications submitted through the Applicant Tracking System will be accepted.

The AGCO is an inclusive and equal opportunity employer.

The AGCO has the responsibility to lead by example in advancing racial equity and to build a diverse, inclusive, accessible and respectful workplace where every employee has a voice and the opportunity to fully contribute. To this effect, you are encouraged to reflect upon the diversity you would bring to the role within your application including, but not limited to, individuals identifying with one or more of the under-represented groups identified within Ontario's Human Rights Code.

Disability related accommodation during the recruitment process is available upon request. Persons with disabilities who require accommodation during the application process, or who need job postings in an alternative format, may email their request to askhr@agco.ca. The subject line should read “Accommodation in Application – [Position Title].

We do not use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to screen, assess, or select applicants at any stage of the hiring process. All applications will be reviewed and evaluated by our Human Resources team and hiring managers.

Additional information:

Apply by:
Friday, August 28, 2026 11:59 pm EDT
Position details:
  • 1 English Permanent, 90 Sheppard Ave E, North York, Toronto Region
Compensation group:
Excluded
Work hours:
Category:
Finance and Economics
Posted on:
Thursday, August 13, 2026

How to apply:

  1. You must submit your application using only one of the methods identified below.
  2. Your cover letter and resume combined should not exceed five (5) pages. For tips and tools on how to write a concise cover letter and resume, review the Writing a Cover Letter and Resume: Tips, Tools and Resources.
  3. Customize your cover letter and resume to the qualifications listed on the job ad. Using concrete examples, you must show how you demonstrated the requirements for this job. We rely on the information you provide to us.
  4. Be sure to quote the Job ID number for this position.
  5. OPS employees are required to quote their WIN EMPLOYEE ID number when applying.
Send application to: 

Language requirements and assessment:
All external Ontario Public Service (OPS) job ads are posted in English and French. Check the "position(s) language" section at the top of each job ad for the language requirements. For all roles, candidates are assessed in English, the business language of the OPS. If the position is bilingual (English/French), you'll also need to pass a French-language proficiency test.

Exigences en matière de langue et évaluation:
Toutes les offres d'emploi externes de la fonction publique de l'Ontario (FPO) sont affichées en français et en anglais. Consultez la section « Langue du ou des postes » en haut de chaque offre d'emploi pour connaître les exigences linguistiques. Pour tous les postes, les candidats sont évalués en anglais, la langue d'affaires de la FPO. Si le poste est bilingue (anglais/français), vous devrez également passer un test de compétences linguistiques en français.


All external applicants (including former employees of the Ontario Public Service) applying to a competition in a ministry or Commission public body must disclose (either in the cover letter or resume) previous employment with the Ontario Public Service. Disclosure must include positions held, dates of employment and any active restrictions as applicable from being rehired by the Ontario Public Service. Active restrictions can include time and/or ministry-specific restrictions currently in force, and may preclude a former employee from being offered a position with the Ontario Public Service for a specific time period (e.g. one year), or from being offered a position with a specific ministry (either for a pre-determined time period or indefinitely). The circumstances around an employee's exit will be considered prior to an offer of employment.

Information collection notice

We are collecting your personal information to assess how well you meet the qualifications for employment with the Ontario Public Service, and for related recruitment purposes. The collection of personal information is necessary to the proper administration of OPS Careers, which is an authorized common service in accordance with s. 6 of the Ministry of Government Services Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. M.25.

Please do not include any more personal information than is needed for your application (for example, do not include your photograph or social insurance number).

If you have any questions about how your information is collected, used, shared or saved, please contact us.

Strengthening Ontario, together